UC Santa Barbara

Researchers from three institutions, including , have demonstrated that artificial intelligence has the potential to make future visual prostheses, like a bionic eye, more precise, predictable and responsive to an individual user 👁️

"A useful visual prosthesis cannot rely on a fixed recipe," said UC Santa Barbara's Michael Beyeler.

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Deep learning refines how bionic eyes communicate with the brain UCSB associate professor of computer science Michael Beyeler and his colleagues used a deep-learning model to design patterns of electrical stimulation for electrodes temporarily implanted in the visual cortex — the region at the back of the brain that processes visual information — of a blind p...

How much better for the planet are electric vehicles, really? You’d be better off sending a brand-new gasoline-fueled car to the scrap heap and replacing it with an EV, according to new findings from researchers at and UC Santa Cruz who explored the carbon footprint trade-offs of vehicle trade-ins.

"Replacing an internal-combustion vehicle with a battery electric vehicle almost always reduces greenhouse gas emissions," said Roland Geyer, a professor at UCSB Bren School.

Full story: https://ow.ly/u9sP50Zxa3O

University of California

Thinking about trading your car in for an EV? There’s a compelling new reason to do it now Accounting for the emissions over a vehicle’s entire lifecycle overturns the sunk-cost thinking that keeps gasoline vehicles on the roads.

Take a look at nature and you’ll find fractals everywhere: 2026 UC President’s Postdoctoral Fellow Therese Basa Landry is using the power of fractals to discover the math underlying complex natural phenomena, in this case erosion.

Working with UC Santa Barbara mathematics professor Bjorn Birnir, Landry’s main research focus concentrates on developing a rigorous mathematical theory of erosion.

A deeper understanding of erosion could help scientists, researchers and engineers predict risks, optimize structures, and strengthen the understanding of how landscapes evolve over time.

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UC President’s Postdoctoral Fellow uses fractals to study erosion UC President's Postdoctoral Fellow Therese Basa Landry will be using her expertise in fractal geometry

Flavor is in the brain, and nowhere is that clearer than in neuroscientist Matthieu Louis’s introductory neurogastronomy class.

The course, "Unraveling the Science of Flavor: From Genetics and Data to Michelin Stars," part of the campus’s undergraduate Discovery Seminar series, unpacks the multimodal phenomenon we call taste.

"Food perception is a wonderful way to introduce concepts of biochemistry and neuroscience through our own sensory experience," Louis says.

Read more in the newest issue of UC Santa Barbara Magazine: https://ow.ly/hn8v50ZvWZX

's Christopher Costello was just named a Fellow of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists (AERE), the highest honor bestowed in the field of environmental and resource economics.

Costello, who established UCSB's Environmental Markets Lab (emLab) to translate research and scholarship into actions, was cited for his research spanning fisheries policy, ocean governance and regulatory design.

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Christopher Costello recognized for his pioneering work in environmental markets Professor Christopher Costello was named a Fellow of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, the highest honor bestowed in the field of environmental and resource economics.

earned 4.5 stars on Money's 2026 Best Colleges list, placing our campus in the nation's top 25% 🏆

Money's analysis showcases the country's top 735 colleges based on graduation rates, cost of attendance, financial aid, alumni salaries and more.

The rankings weigh affordability, quality of education, and student outcomes most heavily.

Celebrating all the friends who made our experience extra special this 💙 Tag your UC Santa Barbara besties from around the world 🌎



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1. Three UC Santa Barbara graduates smiling in caps and gowns, one wearing a purple lei.
2. Two grads in caps and gowns wearing sunglasses, smiling and pointing at the camera.
3. Two smiling grads in blue academic regalia.
4. Two grads in caps and gowns, one giving the other a piggyback ride while pointing excitedly.
5. Two grads posing with peace signs outside the Thunderdome.

When the Palisades Fire tore through LA, it took California landmark the Will Rogers Ranch House with it. Six months later, a wildfire destroyed the Grand Canyon Lodge. These aren't anomalies.

Researchers at 's National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis have completed the first national-scale assessment of wildfire risk to American cultural heritage.

Of the 100,117 sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places, more than half face measurable wildfire exposure. For 3,446 places, that risk is severe.

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Thousands of America's historic landmarks face significant wildfire risk Researchers at UCSB's National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis assess the fire risk to thousands of America's beloved historic landmarks

A nature story worth celebrating this : Thanks to the consistent and focused efforts of researchers and conservationists, once-endangered mountain yellow-legged frogs leaped back to life in Yosemite ✨

A landscape-scale study led by biologist Roland Knapp details the long-term endeavor comprising 24 reintroductions across a dozen different Yosemite sites and over more than 17 years:

Comeback kids Once-endangered mountain yellow-legged frogs have leaped back to life in Yosemite

Former "Cheers" showrunner Cheri Steinkellner teaches her students to write 1,000 words a day, in order to "be the writer you wish to read in the world, engaging in daily dialogue with your inner monologue."

When the Emmy- and Golden Globe-winning writer and producer made the shift from Groundlings performer to writer alongside her husband and creative parter, a lightbulb went off that set her career on an award-winning track, starting with a stage play and a writing gig on "The Jeffersons."

Now, she's learning from her Gen Z undergraduates: "Comedy is a moving target, and what makes us laugh changes constantly," Steinkellner says. "My students open a window into what makes them laugh, what is meaningful to them. This is incredibly helpful in my own work."

Full story in UC Santa Barbara Magazine:

Act like a writer Cheri Steinkellner teaches her students to behave as if they are writers, even if they don’t quite believe it yet. It’s an insight she gained over decades working in the entertainment industry. Now she shares that lesson — and many others — with students at UC Santa Barbara.